Four teams contested the Armstrong Cup in 1932-33: Sackville (holders), Dublin, Blackrock, and Colmcille. Matches were over eight boards, each team played each of the others home and away, and only overall match results counted.
Sackville and Dublin had dominated the event for decades, since Booterstown and Blackrock won in 1902-03. Colmcille were playing in the Armstrong Cup for the first time; they had won the Ennis Shield for the previous two years.
The event started with one of the most stunning shocks ever seen in the event, when Sackville lost their opening match 7-1 to Blackrock, with their sole point coming from a walkover. The match was played on November 29, 1932, at Sackville’s club rooms at 30 Harcourt Street.
| Sackville | Blackrock | |
| T. P. Kane | 0 – 1 | J. J. O’Hanlon |
| C. J. Barry | 0 – 1 | A. A. MacDonogh |
| T. A. V. Haynes | 0 – 1 | R. T. Varian |
| H. N. Bowesman | 0 – 1 | M. J. O’Sullivan |
| F. Mahoney | 0 – 1 | M. V. O’Nolan |
| G. H. Jacobs | 0 – 1 | O. A. Quigley |
| G. R. Haynes | 0 – 1 | E. Russell |
| F. J. Wilcox | + / – | H. M. Dockrell |
| 1 – 7 |
Dublin beat Colmcille 5½ – 2½.
In the second round matches, both played on December 12, 1932, Sackville beat Colmcille 6 – 2, but Blackrock and Dublin drew 4 – 4. On board 1, the reigning Irish champion T. G. Cranston, for Dublin, drew with John O’Hanlon; the two were playing a match for the Irish championship for 1932 at the time.
The Irish Times reported (December 16)
“This season will be memorable in Dublin chess for the breakdown of the supremacy of two clubs, Dublin and Sackville, which had persisted for over a quarter of a century. In their first Armstrong Cup match Blackrock gave a crushing defeat to Sackville, and now, in their second match, they have drawn with Dublin.”
Blackrock thus held the joint lead with Dublin heading into 1933. However, they suffered a major setback by losing their next match 5 – 3 to Colmcille.
Dublin recorded hard-fought wins against Sackville and Blackrock, as well as a more comfortable win against Colmcille, to reach 4½ match points out of 5. Blackrock had beaten Sackville in the return match, so none of the other teams could catch Dublin. Sackville recorded a consolation 5 – 3 win against Dublin in their return match.
The final table, with the result of the second Blackrock – Colmcille match unknown, was:
| D | S | B | C | mp | |
| Dublin | . | 10 | ½1 | 11 | 4½ |
| Sackville | 01 | . | 00 | 11 | 3 |
| Blackrock | ½0 | 11 | . | 0– | 2½* |
| Colmcille | 00 | 00 | 1– | . | 1* |
So Dublin won the Cup, for the 11th time. The team was T. G. [Thomas George] Cranston (+2 =3 −1), J. J. [James] Doyle (+4 =0 −2), Norman H.[ay] Wallace (+2 =2 −1, 1 unknown), P. J. [Patrick Joseph] Laracy (+4 =1 −1), J. T. [John Thomas] Gerrard (+4 =1 −1), William Hassell (+1 =0 −0), J. J. Morrissey (+2 =0 −0), J.[ohn] Barry Brown (+1 =1 −1); S. A. French (+1 =0 −1), J. C. Mahoney (+1 =0 −2); H.[ugh] T. Twomey (+2 =1 −0, 1 unknown); Hugh M. McIlwaine (+0 =0 −1); Capt. R. H. [Richard Henry] Prior-Wandesforde (+1 =0 −1).
A photo of the winning team appeared in the January 1934 issue of BCM:
I had added details of the season to the Armstrong Cup page several years ago, but did not add a cover post at the time, I think because I set it aside until I could copy the photo.